Airshow Moment – Edwardian Evening

A 2017 Airshow Moments series could not be complete without a post covering some of the events of the Shuttleworth Collection June Evening show.

This show was blessed with perfect weather, glorious sunshine and minimal winds. While the star turn may have been the debut display from the three Hurricanes, another special moment came after 9pm.

The Edwardian aircraft have not been particularly active at shows in the last couple of years, with conditions rarely lining up at the right time to allow these early machines to display. At this show it was possible for all of the currently airworthy Edwardians to fly.

The first performance came from the Avro Triplane, which flew two displays during the final hour of the show. The Bristol Boxkite replica joined the triplane for the latter part of its first display.

Finally as the clock turned nearer to 10pm the wonderful, 1910 original Deperdussin racer made four gentle hops up and down the runway, a quiet, understated piece of airshow magic. The final hour of this special show took the assembled crowd on a real step back in time to the earliest days of aviation in a way that only Old Warden can.